Stress Less: Your Guide to the Holidays Part 1

The Holidays are upon us and as the head of your household it can be a juggling act to find   the balance between being the hostess and enjoying the holiday themselves especially if

you have children.  As parents, you want to capture all of the moments you can during the

holidays while also making sure that each part of the festivities goes off without a hitch.

Holidays can be absolutely crazy– from the traveling, to the noise level, to the food

preparations and gift wrapping— all wonderful and memory making, but stressful none the

less.

The key to keeping your head about you throughout the course of the holidays is to be

organized and prepare beforehand. While you cannot necessarily control the course of

events on the holidays themselves, you can however prep and organize the holiday menu,

task list, and manage the day in such a way that allows things to flow somewhat peacefully

without an extensive to-do list on the actual day of celebration.  Here are three tips that will

help you as you prep and plan for this year’s festivities:

1. Make Lists. Make lists for your lists. And make lists for those too! All jokes aside, list

making really is a great way to stay on top of tasks this year. Organize your lists into

different categories and create itemized task lists for yourself and those planning

with you.

2. Take advantage of online freebies. The internet is crawling with free printables,

checklists, holiday cooking guides, coupons, and DIY tips for designer-worthy

decorations and menus.  Simple tools such as this will make the holiday season less

overwhelming, and assist you as you prepare to be an amazing hostess.

3. Plan ahead.  Your greatest asset during the holiday season will be to complete as

many tasks as possible in advance so on the day of your gathering only the finishing

touches need to be done.This includes menu planning, shopping for the ingredients,

and cutting or preparing the food before hand. Prepare as many dishes as possible

ahead of time so that your time in front of a hot stove is tremendously reduced.

Hostess veterans, how have YOU prepped and planned for hosting for Holiday Seasons

past? Any tips or tricks?  We would love to hear from you!